In Defense of a Boring Christian Life

I search Christianbook.com using the words “destiny” and “dream”.  105 hits.  And “destiny” by itself?  The titles that appeared left me speechless.  I did a search out of curiosity because I’d heard these words so often recently in “Christian” settings, but couldn’t recall a passage of the bible addressing these sort of topics.  Let me name a few of the titles at the top of the list when I searched: Dream to Destiny: The Ten Tests You Must Go Through to Fulfill God’s Purpose for Your Life; The Dream-Giver: Following Your God-Given Destiny; Supernatural Skyline: Where Heaven Touches Earth, Soul-Print: Discovering Your Divine Destiny; Free to Soar: How You Can Love the Church, Serve with Your Husband, and Fulfill Your Destiny as a Woman in Ministry.

This last title leaves me with a song in my head, a song made popular in the 70’s to be the war-cry of the “liberated” woman:  “I can bring home the bacon, fry it up in a pan, and never, ever let your forget you’re a man, ‘cause I’m a woman, W-O-M-A-N.”  Sounds like an exhausted woman to me.  Shouldn’t the church be different from the world?  I thought that Christians, at least, would recognize the more-than-full-time job of being a “wife and mother”.  It is not only enough to fill a day, it is enough to fulfill my obligation as a Christian to never tire of good works, to fulfill my office as given by God and to allow me not to be ashamed of my vocation.  But so many around me, both friends and the authors and teachers to whom they listened, seemed to think I was thinking big enough for myself.  Everywhere I turned (outside of God’s Word) so much more was asked of me than what I had ever imagined, or even wanted, for mylife.

So is every Christian automatically destined for greatness?  Does God have a special plan for every person, whether Christian or not?  Many preachers seem to imply that God loves and has plans for every person out there and we must be taught how to get in sync with God.  If God has a plan, can I really stop him?  And if God has a plan for a particular person, is it necessarily to his or her benefit?  His plan for Pharaoh was for him to end up at the bottom of the Red Sea!  As Paul wrote to the believers in Rome, God hardens and softens whom he wills, for the ultimate end of His own glory.

 If I work as a janitor or a cook or in a cubicle for a tech company, should I assume there is something further God wants from me, vocationally speaking? Am I less of a Christian if I don’t want more from life?  Whatever happened to “godliness with contentment is great gain”?  Is the Christian life supposed to be an adventure?  If my life is tedious, does that mean I need to get on the ball, and figure out what my great adventure ought to be and get out there and get started?  (I’ve honestly got all my 42-year-old self can handle with four kids and a husband.  I’m quite sure adventure might just do me in…or leave my family in the lurch.)  And is a life of risk equivalent to “walking by faith?” 

There was a time when I would have said “yes” in answer to all these questions.  But I finally started questioning all these ideas that were being driven into my head from every side.

For one thing, people with adventurous, risk-taking, finding-your-dream kind of lives are not necessarily even Christian.  And even if they are, does their adventurous lifestyle make them more holy than me?  More pleasing to God?  “Without faith, it is impossible to please God.”  But is faith equivalent to being willing to jump off cliffs?  Is that biblical faith?  And is God less pleased with the one whose life is boring and tedious?  Hebrews 11 says that faith is “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  “Assurance” and “conviction” sound so solid and dignified and not risky at all actually.

Isn’t it Okay if the Christian Life is Boring?

Boring has become a thing I long for.  I honestly love ruts, though I call it routine, and so do my children.  I love a peaceful, slow-paced life.  I don’t long for a more exciting life or adventure.  I would think that the church would be a safe place for a woman without great ambition.  But even there, I get the message that I’m being satisfied with too little.  People tell me I should write bible studies, get published.  I suppose they’re trying to be encouraging, but it fosters discontent.  I was told by one woman that she had a vision from God that I would sing in other nations, that God has some great destiny for my singing. She said that right now I was like a little “bird on a fence” singing simply because that’s who I am.  I actually liked the sound of that.  But her vision went on to describe “greater things.”  I wished it hadn’t.  I know she thought she was encouraging me, but I preferred to remain the “bird on a fence”.  Every time I start believing I ought to have greater things, I get frustrated when it doesn’t seem to be happening and get jealous of those who get more time on stage.

Talents and Seeds

Some might say that I am like the servant who buried his “talent”.  But did Jesus intend the parable to teach what we should be doing with our abilities, our strengths?  The Greek language in which this parable was recorded had only one meaning for the word translated “talent”, one regarding monetary value.  If it were about natural strengths and what we call “giftings”, why then would Paul boast in his weaknesses?  Why would he cast aside all that he used to count as gain and regard it as loss for the sake of Christ?  If Paul were put in the average American church, talk such as his would have provoked rebuke by church members who would argue that he could have used all that education and status “for the Lord”.  But for the Lord, for the sake of the gospel, he set aside his advanced education and impeccable resume and worked as a tentmaker to support himself in a way that would leave him more time for preaching and teaching free of charge.  But the gospel was the talent entrusted to Paul, not his natural abilities. 

Note all these passages that instruct us as to what God has entrusted to us, about what he gives us to plant, to invest, to cause to grow:

• Jesus himself said he entrusted to his Apostles was his Word (“I have given them your word” John 17:14) We in turn would be entrusted with the Apostles’ words. (Also John 17)
• In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus says the seed is the Word of God, and then Paul, according to 1 Corinthians 3:6, is also doing the work of the sower “I planted, Apollos watered…”
• We are entrusted, more specifically, with the Gospel, the good news of salvation from God through Jesus from our sins by his death and resurrection.  The Gospel is what Paul said he received from Christ. (Gal 1:12)
• The Word of God, according to the Parable of the Sower, the seed that is spread by the Son of Man.  Seeds and money are often parallel symbols because they grow and multiply, along with yeast, though yeast usually has a more negative connotation. 
• The “testimony about our Lord” is the “good deposit” entrusted to Paul 1 Timothywho entrusted it to Timothy.  2 Timothy 1:10-14, 2 Timothy 2:2

What is God’s Great Plan for my Life?

Usually, those that discuss “dreams, destiny and passions” usually speak in terms of this life, what we will make of ourselves, the impact we make, the mark we leave behind.  Jesus made a point to contrast our life on earth with life in heaven:

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where you treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:19-22

“Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 10:39

“Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?  Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”  Matthew 16:25, 26

“Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it but whoever loses his life will keep it.”  Luke 17:33

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.  If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 15:18,19

“In the world you will have tribulation.  But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

The Apostle John wrote:

“Do not love the world or the things in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world.  And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.” 1 John 2 15-17

And Paul wrote:

“Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.”  Colossians 3:2-4

“For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ.  Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.  But our citizenship is in heaven and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body.” Philippians 3:18-21

So what is our earthly life supposed to look like?  Are the adventures of Joseph or David or Paul or Peter supposed to be normative?  Would we want them to be?  I will look in God’s Word and see what Jesus and Apostles said our life ought to look like:

“If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” 1 Timothy 5:8

“Let [widows] first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God.”

“[Pray] for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may live a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.”

“But we urge you brothers…to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.”  1 Thessalonians 4:11

“[T]here is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.  But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.  But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils.  It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” 1 Timothy 6:6-10

This is really the tip of the iceberg.  The New Testament text is chock full of exhortations to live quiet, dignified lives and that our first and foremost area of responsibility is our family.  Take it from a home schooling mother of four.  This leaves little room for “adventure”. 

I want to put out a challenge:  Next time you feel the urge to defend the Christian life against the accusation of being “boring” … just let it lie.  The word “boring” implies, first of all, an expectation to be entertained, to be stimulated.  I can guarantee that there is not one biblical promise of “entertainment” for the believer.  Rather we are promised tribulation and persecution in this world.  We are promised that the world will hate us.  We are to be living sacrifices, to be like Paul, a drink offering, poured out on the sacrifice and service of others.  We are to be expended, spent, to count it all loss for the sake of Christ.  The cry of the “heart”  that says “I’m bored!” is really the voice of the flesh, and we are to make no provision for the flesh, because the desires of the flesh are at war with the desires of the Spirit.

A  Biblical Look at the Word “Passion”

Several years ago, I took “spiritual gifts testing” to inventory my “gifts and passions” so I could know where I will best be “plugged in” into my congregation.  Just last month, I overheard a conversation between two women discussing the same thing being done at her church right now.  To ignore a passion or dream you have for your life is spoken of as a sin to be avoided, that God put your desires there for a reason.  Can anyone give a biblical passage supporting this idea?  Authors and screenwriters weave this myth which details the danger of ignoring your “heart’s desire” and those things about which you are “passionate” as a frequent thread of modern story-telling.  This myth is filtering into sermons and “inspirational” books and taught as biblical truth.

So is this really a danger?  What does the bible actually say about my “passions”?  Most references to “passion” or “desire” seems to be in a negative context.

“Put to death…passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”  Colossians 3:5

“So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness…”  2 Timothy 2:20

“Among them are those…led astray by various passions…” 2 Timothy 3:6

“But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.  Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”  James 1:14,15

“And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:24

“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions.” Romans 6:12

“Among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of body and mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” Ephesians 2:3

“Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.”  Colossians 3:5

To glorify our inner desires, our natural urges, our instincts—this is not found in the Bible but is found in the philosophy of Nietzsche.  Nietzsche was inspired by evolutionary teachings and helped found the “human potential” movement, which is still going strong today in every form of self-help.  Nietzsche taught that people should let instinct and what comes naturally rule.  But has anyone noticed that biblical virtue never comes naturally?  The virtues of forgiveness, mercy, hospitality, putting the needs of others above my own, refusing to advance my own agenda—these require me to deny my instincts and urges in order to put them into practice.  I obey in faith, trusting my Lord, for whom they did come naturally.  Obeying Nietzsche’s philosophy will lead me down Hitler’s path.  Can we all agree that would be a bad thing?

A Biblical look at Plans and Dreams

Does the Bible lay out for Christians a live of “great adventure”?  Does God really have “big plans” for each of us that we somehow need to discover and reach for or receive)?

Paul said, 1 Corinthians 7, “Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him...Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called.  Were you a slave when called?  Do not be concerned about it.” You can almost hear him say, “Were you chained to a cubicle when you were called?”

The story of Joseph has a habit of popping up in sermons about “pursuing your dreams”.  I guess this is because these pastors were at a loss for a passage to go to for “finding your dream” and thought they could somehow make Joseph’s story fit, since the word “dream” comes up so much in his story.  Of course they don’t let a little thing such as the contextual meaning of the word “dream” being completely different than what they need for the purpose of their sermon get in the way.  They kind of hope their listeners will overlook that point.

But I’m not sold on the idea that god is interested in my “dreams”.  And the supernatural visions God gave to Joseph to help preserve the family of Abraham, the line of the Messiah, to perceive these events as something that ought to be normative is simply misguided.  I’m pretty sure God is not interested in my agenda for my life.  My agenda, more likely than not, is corrupted by my sinful nature and my lack of heavenly perspective. 

And many of these same teachers will tell their hearers that those who speak negatively in any way regarding your “dream” are “dream-killers” and somehow an agent of Satan.  This serves, of course, to inoculate their listeners against anyone who may want to talk to them in a sensible manner.  I know a woman who was convinced that her desire for a child was so strong (obsessive, as it can sometimes be.  It’s natural to want to have children, but it can become an idol.) that she convinced herself that God had made her with this strong desire and it couldn’t be God’s will for her to be married to the man she was married to because he appeared to be sterile.  She left him. 

When you have a desire that is so strong that it doesn’t go away and seems to block out all other thought, that used to be called idolatry, and now so-called Christian teachers are calling them God’s “dream for your life”, or “your destiny” or your “God-given passion”.  The word “destiny” does not appear in the Bible that I am aware.   However, the word “predestined” does appear and this is in reference to God’s sovereign will and his work as the author and the finisher of our faith.  Knowing we are predestined does not require action on our part except for the praise and gratitude we extend to God for opening our ears to the Truth and drawing us unto him.  If God truly has a plan for us, a purpose, a destiny, do we need to discover it?  Will he not reveal it?  Who is to stop him from accomplishing it?  We certainly are not in danger of getting in God’s way.  Mountains melt like wax before the Lord and I am but dust.

So I am now wary of any teaching filled with terminology not found in God’s word.  There is enough in the Bible to fill about a million or more sermons to edify my soul.  I pray that all who listen to things being said in the name of God would compare them to the word of God and make sure they agree.

Are We Trying To Conjure God?

Many contemporary praise choruses seem to focus on calling down God’s Spirit. “Spirit of the Living God, Fall Afresh on Me”, “Send it on Down”, “Send Your Rain”, asking God to come down, for the Spirit to be Sent down, etc. Recently, I have come to question whether these are precisely the prayers that we should be praying or singing. Has not God already sent down his Son? Hasn’t the Spirit already been given when we first believe, just as it was for Jews and Gentiles in the Book of Acts? Do we need a “fresh outpouring”? Do we need a “fresh anointing”? Is it possible to have more of the Holy Spirit than was already given when we first believed?

“For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law, that the person who does the commandments shall live by them. But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is to bring Christ down) or “’Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:5-8)

And here is the ESV cross-reference for this passage:

“For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart so that you can do it.” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14)

What does the Lord mean by saying “is not too hard for you”? The study notes in my Bible say the meaning of "hard" here is "difficult to understand", rather than "difficult to perform". God has made himself clear. The Bible is not confusing in and of itself. Confusion arrives alongside our preconceptions of what we imagine it ought to be saying. Anyone who is a parent has experienced the peculiar way that children “misunderstand”. They think they already know what you are going to say, so they don’t listen.  Or they let what they wish you were saying get in the way of understanding. The ways children “misinterpret” our words is quite similar to how people misinterpret God’s Word.

Most interpretation problems can be cleared up with these three rules: context, context, and context. Reading the surrounding passage usually clears up mishandling of individual verses. But both the first passage from Romans and the second passage from Deuteronomy can be understood better when considering the cultural context of each one.

This passage from Deuteronomy speaks to the Israelites who were surrounded pagan cultures and tempted towards their ways. God is saying to the Israelites here, “Do not seek spiritual specialists to call up the divine. Do not make a pilgrimage to a more spiritual place. Seek no special knowledge. I have revealed all necessary revelation. Don’t reach up to heaven like those of Babel. You can’t do it! I have come down to the mountain to you.”

Romans was written to believers in a pagan city. To Romans, gods lived on mountaintops and gave tasks to humans for humans to prove themselves worthy. Roman religions also practiced summoning spirits from the underworld. They would think it quite natural that you must go through special rituals to conjure the divine.

In contrast to pagan ways, Paul, by chapter 10 of Romans, has finished describing how God came down to us. We were helpless, dead in our trespasses and sins, and God bridged the gap between the height of his holiness and the despairing depths of our sinfulness, and gave us his own righteousness—gave it to those who believed in his Son, through whom it was given.

Paul explains that many of his fellow Jews, to whom God originally had revealed himself, were zealous for God, but had zeal without knowledge. They were getting it wrong, still trying to be righteous through the law, but the law was never meant to achieve righteousness. The gift of God’s righteousness is freely given, through Jesus. What could we ever do to earn it?

But our flesh, our ego, wants to deserve something, to receive from God because we are “getting it right”.

Perhaps I've never heard this verse of Romans because it clearly forbids what has become so popular. I’m afraid I’ve seen that it’s become popular to seek ways to “conjure God”. We ask Jesus to descend to us, as if he already didn’t do that on the cross. We ask for the Holy Spirit to come down, but he did already on the day of Pentecost following Christ’s resurrection. Is it biblical to call down God, to ask for his outpouring, especially if those doing the asking have already received it?

Some point to great revivals of the past where people responded to the sermon, falling to the ground, despairing of their sin and their hearts miraculously turn towards God and away from their sin. But first of all, these were the lost that were falling before God over their sin, not Christians who felt they needed a “fresh anointing.” And can anyone name a honest-to-goodness occasion such as these “revivals” where the Law is not preached in all its rigor, and then followed by the sweetness of the Gospel? The Word of God must be preached! That is what creates faith, in conjunction with the work of the Holy Spirit, and according to Jesus, the Spirit is sent to convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment.

Now the Spirit’s help is needed, clearly, for conviction, conversion and transformation, but can we control how or when such help comes? God’s Spirit moves where he pleases:

“Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

We clearly can control neither the wind nor the Spirit of God. And was it ever meant to be poured out in a "supplemental way" for the sake of bored Christians who feel like their “walk with God” is just getting flat and stale?

Surely our energy should be expended, not in seeking the Spirit, but learning to wield the Sword of the Spirit, his Word. In Romans 10, Paul says that “faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ”. Hasn’t the word of God become sparse in sermons thick with stories, illustrations and even movie clips? What if we cut the length of sermons in half and filled them to the brim with God’s word? I’m pretty sure if I preached the longest of sermons in the book of Acts (notwithstanding Paul’s sermon that went so long someone fell asleep and fell out the window!) it would probably not last even five minutes when read through in its entirety.

Paul writes:

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” Romans 1:16,17

So maybe we should leave behind our obsession with “revival”. I don’t know if anyone has the temerity any more to schedule so-called “revivals”, but we do schedule VBS, Youth Camps, etc., creating emotional pressure cookers that leave you exhausted and susceptible to symptoms of pseudo-revival.

Many are satisfied with conjuring feelings of affection towards God through music and emotional appeals. And we’ve moved away from hymns chock full of good doctrine and instead have songs that are filled with melodic and lyrical repetition that I know now can induce a state of euphoria due to lack of oxygen. I thought it was something more spiritual happening, but I know now that I was experiencing what any lost person would experience in the same circumstances.

If you examine biblical examples of “revival”, such as the thousands added to the church all at once in Acts 2, it does not occur because people were carried along on some wave of ecstasy.  Rather God added those souls, by his will, through his Sprit, and by the Apostles clearly proclaimed the Gospel in faithful obedience to His command. Often, the Apostles' sermons would summarize the entire Old Testament before they uttered a word regarding redemption through Christ Jesus.

Let me finish by comparing new song about the Spirit, and an old one. Look at these lyrics from a popular song from Christian Radio of the 1980’s sung by the group, First Call. It seems to summarize the thinking that has become prevalent regarding God’s Spirit. Do these lyrics reflect the Spirit he has granted that, according to Paul’s first letter to Timothy, gives us “power, love and self-control”? (“Self-control, alternately translated as sobriety, sound mind and wise discretion.)

Somethin' takes over
Somethin' takes over my soul
And soon you get to reelin'
'Cause of all the joy your feelin'
Till you're very nearly out of control
Just like the rollin'
Of the waters of the mighty sea
When you're connected to the spirit

Heavenly father's sure to hear it
'Cause somethin' takes over me.

Now in contrast, here is Martin Luther’s hymn, Come Holy Ghost, God and Lord. For those not familiar with Reformation history, this hymn is about 500 years old.

Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord,

With all your graces now outpoured

On each believer’s mind and heart;

Your fervent love to them impart.

Lord, by the brightness of your light

In holy faith your Church unite;

From every land and every tongue,

This to your Praise, O Lord, our God, be sung.

Come, holy Light, guide divine,

Now cause the Word of life to shine.

Teach us to know our God aright

And call him Father with delight.

From every error keep us free;

Let none but Christ our master be,

That we in living faith abide,

In him, our Lord, with all our might confide.

Come, holy Fire, comfort true,

Grant us the will your work to do

And in your service to abide;

Let trials turn us not aside.

Lord, by your power prepare each heart

And to our weakness strength impart,

That bravely here we may contend,

Through life and death to you, our Lord, ascend.

Missional Church or New Monasticism?

Modern Reformation - Articles

This is a great article on Willard and Foster by Dr. Michael Horton. I recently heard a quote from Dallas Willard, while being interviewed by John Ortberg. He said the church had been getting the Gospel wrong and described the faulty definition as "the minimal requirements for entrance to heaven". When asked what he thought the Gospel was, Willard responded, "The gospel is not how to get heaven when you do, but how to get to heaven before you die." I was going to blog on this quote, but Michael Horton covers my thoughts and more much better than I could.

Pragmatism--the Secret Religion of the American Christian

Before I start, I want to make a housekeeping note and say, for those of you who may have clicked on the links I have on my sidebar and come to a dead end, I have them fixed now. Sorry about that.  But onto the main post:

R.C. Sproul says in an article on Pragmatism for Christianity.com:

"Pragmatism is the only philosophy native to America. Pragmatism eschews any hope of discovering ultimate truth. It is skeptical with respect to objective principles of righteousness and defines truth as "that which works". in this philosophy, the end always justifies the means. The driving force behind decisions within the scope of pragmatism is the force of expediency.

Is this a philosophy to which the church is enslaved? Is our standard the Word of God? Or has the standard become "does it work?" (I can't help but think of the phrase popularized by Dr. Phil, "How's that workin' for ya?"  As if this were the litmus test for people's actions!)  What exactly does the Bible say that Christ does for us. What are we to do?  Does God help those who help themselves?  And when we grow more like Christ, are we supposed to be privy to the exact workings of our sanctification?

Could good old American pragmatism be the reason behind all those books on the shelves of Christian Book stores that are simply reworked versions of every book found in Barnes and Noble in Self Help, Psychology, Finance, Parenting and Home Organization?  Is this what was meant for us, this "do-it-yourself" sanctification?

We humans love to tinker with things to make them better, faster, more effective.  We want a quick fix for all things. We get over colds too slowly, mail is never fast enough, and laundry detergent is never powerful enough symptoms. And to do our tinkering, we search out the inner workings of things.

It seems everything can be turned into a science. And though it is certainly reasonable to entrust our medical care to a doctor who has studied the workings of the human body, should there be any expert besides God for problems of the soul?

Sadly, we have turned to science to rescue souls. (Though there has been plenty published, though suppressed, on the lack of science behind the relatively recent "science" of psychotherapy.  I'll get a link up soon on a good treatment of that subject.) Is there any other way to look at the proliferation of psychologist, psychiatrists and psychotherapists? Many have given up and assume that the licensed psychiatrist is more qualified to handle a lost soul than a minister of God's word. But it seems to me that a whole industry has been built around treating symptoms rather than disease. (Isn't this really true of the medical profession now too? Hasn't it always been? Is there truly any cure for death? Isn't all sickness simply the birth pangs of our passing out of this world and paying the penalty for Sin?) And we have started to treat our souls as just a bit sick and in need of medicine rather than dead in our trespasses and sins.  And we were not blind and now we see.  Rather we had poor eyesight and just need a little correction.

Now I'm willing to take a gamble and trust a doctor with my body, because it's only temporary anyway.  I'm pretty sure no matter what the doctors do, I'm going to die anyway, right?  But Jesus said:

"Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell." Matthew 10:28

I've heard it said that scientists know all the parts of an atom but can't explain how it holds together. They know that DNA corresponds to the various characteristics of each individual human being, but to call it a blueprint is misleading because no one knows how the body exactly takes that information and produces a living creature. I suspect that there is a lot scientists learn through observation, trial and error, where the findings they publish are simply what they've discovered through paying attention, but reveal not nearly the depth of understanding that we might think of exactly why the world works exactly as it does.

These days, the mystery in life is not treasured. We don't want to believe there are any undiscovered frontiers. We do not happily accept that God knows some things that we just will never know. Knowledge is power (or so the serpent says) and we seem to have a lot of it these days.  And if knowledge makes us better, then the world must be improving, because we can Google the answer to almost any question, right? But what does the bible say?

"The words of the wise are like goads and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh. The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man." Ecclesiastes 12:11-13

Do we really need to know that "how" of our sanctification? Isn't the issue really that we want to get in on it, put in the work to maybe speed up the process? But it is God who sanctifies.  And he was there from the foundation of the world and knows how everything works.  how wonderful that our sanctification is His work.:

"And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth." John 17:19

And Jesus said to Paul at his conversation that he was sending Paul to the Gentiles that he would:

"...open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and place among those who are sanctified by faith in me" Acts 26:13

And it's a mystery, but we are saved through the faith granted to us by God to believe in the gospel, and that is how we are also saved:

"Now I would remind you brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain." 1 Corinthians 15:1, 2

See that?!  The gospel was preached to convert, but it was also preached for sanctification. This sounds like the gospel should be preached to Christians not just the lost! And it should be continually received by us.  It never ceases to have value in our life. And what Gospel is Paul talking about, that seems to be the center of power to save and sanctify?

"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins, in accordance with the scriptures, that he was raised on the third day, in accordance with the Scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:3,4

Now maybe I'm oversimplifying things, but why does man want to go beyond the Word given by one Shepherd? Why do we need more than faith in Christ and his death and resurrection, which was the culmination of every promise and prophecy in the Law and the Prophets? I suppose we think it's not enough. If you look carefully, all of the best stuff promised in God's word, that we receive through Christ, are things we have to wait until the age to come to receive. As Paul says in Romans 8:

"For I consider the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing to the glory to be revealed in us...the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creations, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit."

I think  many Christians are not content with firstfruits but want the whole crop right now. And there are preachers and authors aplenty who pretend they already have it all and can show you how to get it. But again, Paul says in Romans 8:

"We groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies."

What is Paul talking about when he says "the redemption of our bodies" if it is not the resurrection to come? He also says:

"Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience."

But Americans are not patient. And few Christians would imagine that God, in his wonderful plan he has for our life, has in store "tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword." Paul says that "in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us". And it is clear from this whole passage in Romans 8 we are not "more than conquerors" because of some dominion we are given over our children or our finances or even Satan.

 We can face the flames of tribulation in this life because we know they are far cooler than the flames of Hell, and that this time on earth is a vapor and eternity is forever.

So I end with a few questions:  As Peter was crucified upside down alongside his wife, was he experiencing his "best life now"? Why didn't John pray a "sun stand still" prayer to keep him from getting boiled in oil? What happened to the "abundant life" supposedly promised to Christians when the dogs were licking Lazarus' sores as he begged at the gate of the rich man?

So you might ask "Is there anything we're promised for this life besides trouble and tribulation?"  First of all, I suppose it would all be worth it if all we received was reprieve from the fires of Hell, from a just condemnation and entrance into eternal paradise. But there is more, for

"hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." Romans 5:5

Christ's Spirit is the deposit given as a guarantee of what is to come. I'm sure I'll have more later on the work of the Spirit, for this is much misinformation and deception circulated, as it has always been, about the work of His Spirit in our lives.

Examining What's Being Said in the Name of God

Quick Guide for Testing Sermons.

Now these (Berean) Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. –Acts 17:11

Be like the Berean Jews and compare with the Word of God what people are teaching in the name of God.  I’ve listened to many of Chris Rosebrough’s “sermon reviews” and I’ve gotten to be able to predict exactly when he’s going to break in and say something or pull out God’s word to correct what’s being said.  The reason is, there are a few principles you can keep in mind that probably cover 99 percent of how sermons go “off-track” from what the Bible says we should be proclaiming.  (A number to which I arrived by the very scientific process called "guesstimating".)

So, when you hear someone teach, ask yourself:

Was the Word of God correctly handled?  

-        Was the text is taught in its original context?  

-        Was the Old Testament interpreted in light of the New?  

-        Were Gospels interpreted in light of the Epistles?

-        Was anything added that is not actually found in the text?

Straight Talk or "Heresy Two-Step"? 

I'm not sure coined this term, but it's so apt.  But here is a quote by Pastor Bryan Wolfmueller on the Radio Program Fighting for the Faith where he describes what he means when he uses this term:

"the Heresy Two-step starts with two feet on the text.  The illusion must be given that the text is going to be taught on.  Then a sliding step backward is taken into an abstraction.  You move from the text to an idea about the text or to a word in the text.  Once the text is abstracted and a general principle or something along these lines is made.  You can now wiggle around and go in any direction you want.  You can make the text say whatever you want.  Instead of teaching the text you are pontificating on this abstraction which was drawn from the text."

 All Law, No Gospel?

In other words, all about what you ought to do and nothing about the grace of God for when you will fail to do it?  Was it the Good News?  Or good advice?

Is it All about You or All about God

Is the thrust of the message about God and what he has done or is doing or will do?  Or is it about what you need to do?  Or what you need to think about yourself ?

Do I need a crucified and risen Savior for this sermon?

In other words, could the sermon have been just as well preached by a Muslim or Hindu Monk or any given self-help guru?

How is the Spiritual “Grammar”?

Are verbs that need objects used with objects?  For example, is "saved" used with "from our sins" or "from eternal condemnation"? Are the verbs "believe" and "faith" used with the direct objects "God" and "His Word"?

Do euphemisms abound?  Has "sin" become "brokenness" or "bad choices"?  Is Hell ever mentioned?  I'm not saying every sermon has to mention it, but is it ever dealt with at all?  A lot of preachers avoid this subject at all costs.  

Are we "dead" in our trespasses in sin and in need of raising from the dead?  Or do have a "heart in need of healing"?  

Is "condemnation" used in the context of how you feel about yourself?  Or about how God sees you?

Be on Your Guard

Watch out.  Teachers and Preachers (and of course writers) can support some pretty unbiblical views with ear-tickling persuasion and will even quote the bible while doing it.  Dig into your Bible.  Find out if what you hear or read is saying is actually taught in God’s word.

Of course, there are some wolves out there twisting the bible on purpose, but there are also well-meaning deceived people unwittingly deceiving others.  And there are writers with spectacularly unorthodox views writing the books that end up in our bible studies and home groups, so the teachers that teach you may be among those being led astray.  You are not doing any teacher a favor by simply taking them at their word, for they will be judged for missteps you make as a result of bad teaching.